The family of an unarmed black man who was shot dead by a white Oklahoma cop last year have filed a wrongful death lawsuit against both the officer and the city of Tulsa.

The lawsuit, filed by the family of Terence Crutcher, seeks at least $75,000 in damages from the city and from Officer Betty Jo Shelby, who was acquitted of manslaughter by jurors last month.

The lawsuit acknowledges the dangers faced by police, but says they 'did not constitute cause for Officer Shelby to become Terence's "judge, jury, and executioner."'

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Slain: The family of Terence Crutcher (left) are suing Officer Betty Jo Shelby (right) and the city of Tulsa after she shot him dead last year. The are asking for compensation and wide reforms

Unarmed: Crutcher (seen here after being shot) was unarmed when Shelby killed him in September. She said she was scared for her life even though he was walking away, hands up

As well as demanding money, the suit calls for widespread reform in the Tulsa police department.

That includes mandatory training for police officers on managing suspects with mental health or substance abuse issues, as well as mandatory activation of dash cameras during encounters.

It also calls for independent investigations conducted by the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation, and independent prosecutions of Tulsa police shootings by Oklahoma's attorney general.

The suit, made out in Crutcher's name, says that police do no have 'a license... to "shoot first and ask questions later," without properly evaluating the need for such force.'

The suit comes after Shelby's May 17 acquittal. Two days later the 43-year-old officer was reinstated by Police Chief Chuck Jordan, although she won't be allowed on street patrol while an internal affairs investigation continues.

Shelby had been on unpaid leave since September 22, six days after the shooting, when prosecutors charged her. Tulsa County District Attorney Steve Kunzweiler said Shelby had overreacted.

He argued that Crutcher, 40, had his hands in the air and wasn't combative - part of which was confirmed by police video that showed him walking away from Shelby with his hands above his head.

Demands: Crutcher's family want $75,000 in compensation, as well as better training for cops, mandatory dashcam use, and different tactics when dealing with the mentally ill or drug users

PCP: An autopsy found PCP in Crutcher's system, and a vial of the drug was found in his car. Shelby was acquitted of manslaughter in May, and was immediately put back on duty

Shelby had said she fired her weapon during the September 16 encounter out of fear because Crutcher ignored her commands to lie down and kept reaching into his pockets.

Shelby said she fired the fatal shot when Crutcher appeared to reach inside his stalled SUV for what she thought was a gun.

While a vial of PCP was found in his car and some of the drug in his system, no weapon was found on Crutcher or in his vehicle.

Shelby's swift return to the force prompted one minister to call it 'a slap in the face.'

Around 100 protesters gathered outside the courthouse the night jurors returned the verdict, marched for several blocks and briefly blocked a street before peacefully dispersing about an hour later.

'Fear': Shelby (pictured) said she feared for her life and thought Crutcher might be reaching for a weapon. The lawsuit says the danger to police doesn't give them the right to be executioners

Crutcher's family and some black community leaders called the verdict a setback to racial relations in Tulsa.

The city has yet to fully heal from a 1921 race riot that killed 300 black residents, injured thousands more and burned a thriving business district to the ground.

On the day of Shelby's reinstatement, the foreman of the jury that acquitted her said in a public court filing that if Shelby had thought to use her stun gun before Crutcher reached his SUV, the decision 'could have saved his life.'

'Many on the jury could never get comfortable with the concept of Betty Shelby being blameless for Mr Crutcher's death,' the foreman wrote.

The jurors didn't identify themselves in the memo filed in court.

Tension: Shelby's acquittal led to a peaceful demonstration in Tulsa, a city with a history of racist attacks against black people; in 1921, 300 black residents were killed in a race riot